A Move to Protect Low-Wage Workers

A coalition of labor unions, immigrant advocacy groups and nonprofit organizations in New York announced their support on Friday for newly introduced legislation that would greatly increase penalties against employers that violate minimum-wage and overtime laws.

Supporters of the bill, known as the Wage Theft Prevention and Responsible Employer Protection Act, say that wage violations are all too common because penalties for such violations are small under New York law and because employers that break the law face little likelihood of getting caught.

The legislation — introduced in the State Senate and State Assembly — would subject employers that fail to pay, for instance, $10,000 in legally required overtime to having to pay twice that amount in damages. That would be above and beyond the $10,000 in back wages that current law already requires such employers to pay...